1918 Cadillac Type 57 Touring

In 1914, war broke out in Europe. The United States struggled with the idea of joining WWI, but in 1918 the country sent the American Expeditionary Force to Europe to fight alongside the Entente Powers.

The Cadillac Type 57 seven-passenger touring car was chosen by the United States military as the official car for officers. They were powered by the L-head V-8 that Cadillac had first introduced in the Type 51. The 317 cubic-inch engine produced 75 horsepower.

This example arrived in France even before the American fighting men. In August 1917, Rev. Dr. John Hopkins Denison took delivery of this Cadillac and immediately gave the car to the Y.M.C.A., along with his services as a driver, to support America's effort in World War I. When the car arrived in France with the American Expeditionary Forces, it was registered as 'U.S. 1257X,' where the 'X' indicated it was serving as a privately owned vehicle. The car was used by Rev. Denison when he served at the front during the Second Battle of Marne, the battle that led to the end of the war on November 11, 1918. Due to Denison's continued commitment to the troops, the car stayed in France well after the Armistice was signed. The 'Liberty Cadillac,' as it is called today, is the only known original survivor from the Great War.

It is the only original 'Great War' survivor in existence - it sports a bullet hole near the hood that it may have received during the Second Battle of the Marne.

After the war ended in November 1918, the car spent 18 years in the United States Army before its purchase in 1936 by Maj. M.C. Bradley, a collector of military vehicles.

The current owner discovered and acquired the car in 2005.

HVA
The HVA is a 360,000 member national organization focused on preserving and celebrating America's automotive heritage.

In July 2014, the HVA announced the 1918 Cadillac Type 57 (U.S. 1257X) as the first military automobile to be recorded under the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Heritage Documentation. The documentation will be part of the HVA's National Historic Vehicle Register and the Historic American Engineering Record that is archived in the Library of Congress. The HVA and U.S. Dept. of the Interior are working together to document other historically significant automobiles.